1988

ERNEST CARPENTER

Fiddler Ernest "Ernie" Carpenter was born in 1909 in rural
Braxton County near the Elk River town of Sutton. Descended from a
long line of musicians and pioneering river men, Ernie's fiddling
echoed the stories, legends, and musical styles passed on to him by
his forebears. Many of Ernie's tunes, which he later passed on to a
new generation of fiddlers, commemorate important events in the
history of his family and other early settlers in central West
Virginia. Ernie Carpenter passed away in 1997. Photograph by
Michael Keller.